Fighting resumes in north Yemen after brief ceasefire



SANA'A // Following a short ceasefire mediated by tribal chiefs, army-backed tribes and the Houthi rebels resumed fighting yesterday evening in north Yemen. A tribal leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the confrontation resumed because the two sides have no confidence in each other and that the mediators, composed of tribal chieftains from Mareb province, did not have a clear vision of how to implement a sustainable truce.

"In addition, the several hours ceasefire was just a rest for both sides after four days of brutal battle," the tribal leader said. Clashes between the Houthis and soldiers and al Aziz, a government-backed tribe, during the past five days have left more than 50 people dead and dozens wounded and marked the deadliest fighting in the region since a ceasefire in February. The north of the country, mainly Sa'ada, has endured six rounds of fighting since an on-and-off war erupted in 2004. Thousands have been killed and wounded in the fighting and about 250,000 displaced, according to the United Nations.

Also yesterday three protestors were wounded in the southern province of Abyan when police opened fire to disperse hundreds of supporters of the Southern Movement, which is demanding the separation of southern Yemen from the north. Southern Movement activists staged the protest after Friday prayers to commemorate a bloody confrontation with police on July 23, 2009 in which 23 people from both sides were killed.

In another development, al Qa'eda yesterday claimed responsibility for twin attacks on security and intelligence headquarters in the southern Yemen town of Zinjibar on July 14 in which three people were killed. Yemen's branch of al Qa'eda, known as al Qa'eda in the Arabian Peninsula, said in a statement posted on Islamist websites that "dozens were killed and wounded" in the attack. It also said one of its fighters was killed and two wounded in the raid.

Yemen security officials had put the toll at three policemen killed and 11 wounded while two gunmen were also killed and one wounded in the attack. Al Qa'eda in the Arabian Peninsula in its statement vowed to continue its fight in Yemen until the fall of President Ali Abdullah Saleh's government. It said efforts by "treacherous Arab leaders" and "American tyrants" to keep Mr Saleh in power would fail.

"This corrupt, unjust and weak regime is about to fall. And the mujahedeen will continue their attacks until they achieve victory," the statement said Yesterday's statement comes one day after suspected al Qa'eda gunmen ambushed a Yemeni army patrol in Shabwa, killing five soldiers and wounding another, according to security officials. Al Qa'eda in the Arabian Peninsula had also claimed responsibility for a June 19 attack on the intelligence building in the port city of Aden that killed 11 people.

:malqadhi@thenational.ae

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MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma

When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome

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The specs

Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Power: 575bhp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: Dh554,000

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The Perfect Couple

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor

Creator: Jenna Lamia

Rating: 3/5

Diriyah%20project%20at%20a%20glance
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Women finals: 48kg - Urantsetseg Munkhbat (MGL) bt Distria Krasniqi (KOS); 52kg - Odette Guiffrida (ITA) bt Majlinda Kelmendi (KOS); 57kg - Nora Gjakova (KOS) bt Anastasiia Konkina (Rus)

Men’s finals: 60kg - Amiran Papinashvili (GEO) bt Francisco Garrigos (ESP); 66kg - Vazha Margvelashvili (Geo) bt Yerlan Serikzhanov (KAZ)

Captain Marvel

Director: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck

Starring: Brie Larson, Samuel L Jackson, Jude Law,  Ben Mendelsohn

4/5 stars

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Install an air filter in your home.

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The biog

First Job: Abu Dhabi Department of Petroleum in 1974  
Current role: Chairperson of Al Maskari Holding since 2008
Career high: Regularly cited on Forbes list of 100 most powerful Arab Businesswomen
Achievement: Helped establish Al Maskari Medical Centre in 1969 in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region
Future plan: Will now concentrate on her charitable work

The Two Popes

Director: Fernando Meirelles

Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce 

Four out of five stars

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Director: Tim Burton

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Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz

Creator: Lauren LeFranc

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No_One Ever Really Dies

N*E*R*D

(I Am Other/Columbia)

The specs

Engine: 1.5-litre turbo

Power: 181hp

Torque: 230Nm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Starting price: Dh79,000

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The specs

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Forced%20Deportations
%3Cp%3EWhile%20the%20Lebanese%20government%20has%20deported%20a%20number%20of%20refugees%20back%20to%20Syria%20since%202011%2C%20the%20latest%20round%20is%20the%20first%20en-mass%20campaign%20of%20its%20kind%2C%20say%20the%20Access%20Center%20for%20Human%20Rights%2C%20a%20non-governmental%20organization%20which%20monitors%20the%20conditions%20of%20Syrian%20refugees%20in%20Lebanon.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%9CIn%20the%20past%2C%20the%20Lebanese%20General%20Security%20was%20responsible%20for%20the%20forced%20deportation%20operations%20of%20refugees%2C%20after%20forcing%20them%20to%20sign%20papers%20stating%20that%20they%20wished%20to%20return%20to%20Syria%20of%20their%20own%20free%20will.%20Now%2C%20the%20Lebanese%20army%2C%20specifically%20military%20intelligence%2C%20is%20responsible%20for%20the%20security%20operation%2C%E2%80%9D%20said%20Mohammad%20Hasan%2C%20head%20of%20ACHR.%3Cbr%3EIn%20just%20the%20first%20four%20months%20of%202023%20the%20number%20of%20forced%20deportations%20is%20nearly%20double%20that%20of%20the%20entirety%20of%202022.%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ESince%20the%20beginning%20of%202023%2C%20ACHR%20has%20reported%20407%20forced%20deportations%20%E2%80%93%20200%20of%20which%20occurred%20in%20April%20alone.%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EIn%20comparison%2C%20just%20154%20people%20were%20forcfully%20deported%20in%202022.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Violence%20
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What is an FTO Designation?

FTO designations impose immigration restrictions on members of the organisation simply by virtue of their membership and triggers a criminal prohibition on knowingly providing material support or resources to the designated organisation as well as asset freezes. 

It is a crime for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to knowingly provide “material support or resources” to or receive military-type training from or on behalf of a designated FTO.

Representatives and members of a designated FTO, if they are aliens, are inadmissible to and, in certain circumstances removable from, the United States.

Except as authorised by the Secretary of the Treasury, any US financial institution that becomes aware that it has possession of or control over funds in which an FTO or its agent has an interest must retain possession of or control over the funds and report the funds to the Treasury Department.

Source: US Department of State

Company profile

Name: Infinite8

Based: Dubai

Launch year: 2017

Number of employees: 90

Sector: Online gaming industry

Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor

PROFILE OF HALAN

Started: November 2017

Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: transport and logistics

Size: 150 employees

Investment: approximately $8 million

Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar